The ultimate coin lens

A while back, on another forum, I published a thread of a similar title. I used it to showcase the Nikon 95mm f/2.8 Printing-Nikkor (95PN), which is a lens optimized for 1:2 / 2:1 theatrical film transfers (16mm - 35mm, or the reverse). The 95PN has perfectly flat field, zero distortion, and higher sharpness and resolution across the frame than almost any lens ever made. It is also apochromatic, meaning it is fully corrected for longitudinal chromatic aberration (LoCA) at all three colors (R/G/B). Because it is optimized for 1:2 and can be used from 1:4 up to 1:1, it is perfectly adapted for shooting the full range of US coins on APS-C sensors. For the smallest coins, and variety details, it can be reversed and used from 1:1 up to 3:1, where it has few rivals.

Problem with the 95PN is its price and rarity. Only a couple thousand were ever made, and they sell for $1500-$2500 depending on condition. As the ultimate coin lens, perhaps it's worth it!

Recently, I have "discovered" a hidden gem of a lens that while not quite up to the level of the 95PN, still exceeds most every other lens for coin photography due to its similar pedigree of optimum 1:2 / 2:1 theatrical film transfer. The Kodak 89mm f/3.8 Printing Ektar (89PE) was probably used for many more film transfers than the 95PN due to its relative affordability and compatibility with many film printers. Many of the films you might have watched at the Cinema or Drive In were likely printed by an 89PE or its bigger brother, the 103PE.

These Printing Ektar lenses are a very different breed than the range of Printing Ektar lenses made for 1-hour photo shops, which typically have a f/4.5 aperture and have poorer coverage and color correction. The 89PE and its big brother the 103PE are apochromatically corrected (like the 95PN) and sharp from corner to corner even at f/3.8. The f/4.5 are achromats (corrected at only two colors) and generally not as sharp or as flat field. Do NOT go out and buy just any Printing Ektar thinking it will be a great coin lens, as you will be very disappointed.

Below are photos taken of a lowly Peace $ and Lincoln Cent using the 89PE. The Apo correction gives true color fidelity and accuracy.





If folks are interested I'll use the lens to shoot some variety details to show what this lens is capable of!

 

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Great post. I'd love to see some more shots.

 

Being the planet Earth's worst coin photographer, I'd love to see more!

 

How much do these cost? I'm guessing not quite as much as $1500 but more than my budget? ;-)

 

100% crops plz, kthx?

Already looking for one.

Edit: Ooooh, cheap compared to the 105PN but still a bit pricey. It'd have to at least be on par with the Rodenstock.

 

Ray, my wallet really does not like your advice. It knows, that I will have to open it up soon and remove it's guts...

And yeah!! a couple 100% crops and your opinion on how it compares to the Rodenstock would be great. Please and thank you.

 

waiting for @green18 comments

Ken, where are you?

 

This lens, like the 95PN and the Rodenstock 75ARD1 mentioned above, does not have a focusing helicoid, so requires extensions or bellows, and in addition has an odd mount (M38), so needs special adapters. You didn't think it would be easy, did you? . I'm working on getting adapters made by Raf but until then have been using the mounting plate that came with the lens.

Here are 100% crops of the first pics. I used a Canon Rebel XS for these shots.

The eBay seller I got mine from is selling them for $179, which is a steal, IMO.

 

I'm no camera guru.
Here's what I use to image coins.
Camera: Nikon D90
Lens: Nikkor 60mm Macro

It works well for me.
The tough parts for me are:
-- getting the lighting correct (brightness and location)
-- getting the camera settings correct (f-stop and speed)

 

Yep, lighting is the toughest thing. Camera settings are definitely not so tough if you use Av mode (aperture priority). This mode fixes the aperture and automatically adjusts the shutter speed for proper exposure. Just use f/8 and you can't go too wrong.

 

I have not done a direct compo with the 75ARD1 yet, but my impressions so far are favorable. The 75ARD1, while labeled an Apo, is really a very well-corrected achromat. I don't worry much about the small amount of LoCA in the 75ARD1, but I shoot mostly copper, and the small color shifts are often obscured by the strong red color of BU Cents. Where the shifts are most noticeable is on fresh, untoned silver. Tiny amounts of red and green shifts can be seen on the 75ARD1, while I don't see any on the 89PE (or the 95PN / 105PN).

My next step is to post some higher mag shots, and then I'll compare with the 75ARD1.

A couple more things about this lens...

First, it's small, only 34mm diameter at front and back. This makes lighting a little easier.

Second, the longer focal length gives more working distance, and is more forgiving of bellows minimum extension. This makes it easier to set up for larger coins.

 

Depends on what attachment thread comes with the lens. It's very likely M39 (Leica) or M42 (Pentax) threads, meaning you'll need an adapter. Either way, it will not function automatically; the camera won't "see" the lens so you'll be working manually, adjusting aperture at the lens and all other settings in-camera. Further, you'll need some sort of equipment with which to set magnification (bellows, spacers, etc.) and focus (focusing rail, helicoid).

This is the price those of us who use duplicating lenses for imagery have to pay - needing to learn the nuts and bolts of photography in detail.

Aperture is kind of forced upon you mathematically by diffraction - you use the smallest (numerically largest) aperture number which keeps your particular camera out of diffraction. ISO is always best set at the lowest number you can still achieve a reasonable exposure with, which itself depends on how steady your mount is; with a good solid mount and careful technique you can go as slow as 1/8 or even longer. In the coin photography niche, we create a final product which easily shows the slightest of noise caused by higher ISO.

Then, as Ray mentions, you use Aperture Priority and let the camera do what it can for you. Me, I usually use full Manual operation, because I've run into situations (especially with darker/circulated copper) where I prefer a different exposure than the camera chooses to get closer to the "in-hand" look (usually a faster exposure than the camera wants). But either way Exposure is the only setting which is really a "variable" in the process.

Poor time for this information to show up; no lenses in my budget this week.

 

Ray (@rmpsrpms ) I love every one of your posts.

You are truly the guru, ninja, jedi, etc. of coin photography as a science. You are simply brilliant! Thanks for all you have done to advance numismatic photography.

 

Yes, were it not for him I would have wasted hundreds, if not thousands, of hours over the last decade simply looking at coins rather than exploring the arcane depths of photographic technique.

Who am I kidding? I'd probably have done it anyway, just with different equipment.

 

Holy buckets, am I out of my league in this thread. I thought Greek at seminary was tough; this thread contains a whole new language. I admire you folks that are in to this, understand it, have practiced and experimented and ultimately come up with the results you post.
Steve

 

Cool stuff guys!

I shot the same 54-S RPM#4 with the lens reversed at f/3.8. See full sensor and crops below.

I also included a "money shot" of the date and mintmark. This shot is a 1600x1200 crop from the full sensor shot, then downsized to 800x600 to eliminate the softening effects of sensor demosaicing. Note that at f/3.8 I am shooting near the DLA of the Canon XS sensor, so the downsizing is not helping reduce diffraction softening, but there is still significant softening at 100% crops due to the camera itself.

A disadvantage of the longer lens is it's harder to get high magnification. Using a Pentax Auto Bellows, I can only get up to around 2:1. However, with a sharp lens at 2:1 and 2x downsizing, the crops are excellent and sharp as proven by the money shot...

 

Steve...I was writing my last post while you sent yours, and I took things to a new level. Sorry for that. The basics are not that tough, but indeed the subtleties of diffraction, sensor demosaicing, downsizing effects, etc are very advanced topics. Ultimately the only thing that matters is the result, and this lens definitely delivers good results.

 

Holy Cow, that is straight money. Yeah, this lens is on a par with any of its' peers.

 

These guys run rings around me Frank, but I do enjoy learning from them........